Steam Power to the Rescue!

With the harsh weather much of Europe has been having lately, many of the more modern trains in England haven’t been working. Luckily for travellers the Peppercorn A3, a steam engine built by volunteers and based on 1940s technology, was there to help out:

The locomotive’s ‘Cathedrals Express’ service was offering festive trips in the region when staff on board heard about the stranded passengers.

The travellers were offered free seats and were dropped off at stations as it chuffed through Kent, said Mark Allatt, chairman of the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, the charity which built Tornado.

Mr Allatt said they were pleased to be able to help some of London’s stranded commuters ‘get home in style’ and joked that rail operators could learn lessons from them.

‘It’s amusing because this engine is predominantly made up of 1940s’ technology and we were able to keep running despite modern trains not being able to,’ he said.